Hospital Pharmacist
2008;15:175-177
May 2008

Education and training — a professional development framework

By Helen Middleton, MRPharmS, Susan Sanders, MRPharmS, Maria Christou, MRPharmS, Sally Lau, MRPharmS,and Julie Sowter, MRPharmS

SUMMARY

Education, training and development of others are essential activities undertaken by pharmacists and pharmacy support staff in all sectors of pharmacy practice. They come from diverse backgrounds, are at different stages of their careers and are in various areas of specialisation.

Irrespective of the diversity in roles, competencies in all aspects of education and training involve similar and transferable skills that could be embodied in a single framework.

The NHS Pharmacy Education and Development Committee and the UK Clinical Pharmacy Association education and training group jointly identified a need to develop a single education, training and workforce development (ETWD) framework to:

• Provide clarity and consistency across the profession in terms of the range of education, training and workforce development skills needed when developing others

• Define competencies for the diverse range of pharmacists and pharmacy support staff with roles in ETWD

• Support “higher level practice” across all sectors of pharmacy practice

• Act as a structured professional and career development tool for
individuals

The aim was to develop a framework that can be used by any member of pharmacy staff (across any sector of practice) involved in the education, training and development of others, and that is suitable for those seeking to:

• Develop their roles as trainers and educators as part of their professional activities

• Become expert practitioners in pharmacy education, training and workforce development

Stakeholders, representing a range of organisations and sectors of pharmacy, were consulted through all stages of the development process to ensure wide applicability of the framework across the profession.

Consideration was also given to how the framework can be used in conjunction with other competency frameworks and professional development approaches used by different pharmacy groups and in line with relevant national occupational standards (NOS). Links were also made between the ETWD framework and the NHS Knowledge and Skills Framework (KSF).